


I'm always in pain

by GylfiDekavage



Category: Original Work
Genre: Aura Powers, F/M, Original Character(s), Science Fiction & Fantasy, Short, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:53:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26162938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GylfiDekavage/pseuds/GylfiDekavage
Summary: Scene X from an unwritten work. Work title: "Aura".Phil is the main character, who gets transferred from his home to a youth prison for "aura people". In there, he meets Ansel, a charismatic and powerful guy who convinces him to break out and flee with some of the friends he makes in the prison. Authorities hunt after them and they start to live as refugees under the protection of a huge forest. One day, they bump into another group of refugees - with Minette as leader.
Relationships: Original Character(s)/Original Character(s)





	I'm always in pain

A hand parted the tent's curtains that separated Phil from the outside world. The layer of dirt corrupted its softness, its look deceiving how beautiful this hand was. There were no wrinkles, only a delicate surface of flesh, ideal. That's how Phil pictured it used to be before everything went downhill. Minette's nails were black with filth; scratches covered her frame from head to toe. Some of them were blood-stained, while some of them weren't as bad as others. When her body followed her hand, Phil's eyes caught a first glance at the severity of her condition. Her dark, short hair had almost lost all color. A few faint hints of red broke through the fading brown-silver mix, which could be considered gray at this point. Phil was intrigued to know her natural hair color. Was it red? Brown? Phil had spent a few of his calm moments, wondering which color would look best on her. After playing with the idea of dirty blonde and black, he had decided on a soft but deep ocean blue. Maybe have the ends fade into black. It worked well with the memory of her standing over him, holding a machete to his temple.

A repellent bruise decorated Minette's nose - Phil wondered whether she was able to smell anything at all. It filled him with sympathy to see her like this. At least her deep, dark orbs hadn't lost their feisty spark. They had captivated Phil the moment he locked eyes with her for the first time. They lit everything around them on fire. That's how Phil had felt when she glared at him after knocking him down and stomping her foot into the pit of his stomach. Neither the sharp sting in his stomach nor the worn steel against his temple was as frightening as the icy blue spheres piercing through his soul, searching for any sign of danger. 

Now her gaze was different. All the hostility from a week earlier had faded. It gave way to a softness that appeared alien in her features. During any time of day, Minette took on the role of the tough leader, looking out for everyone in the group. Whether they had eaten or stayed hydrated, making sure the injured ones were relieved from their suffering as much as possible. Her hands were magic when it came to healing. Phil still couldn't believe the way she confidently placed her hand on Ansel's dislocated shoulder, pulsing the red energy into his skin until the pain had stopped. She didn't show any fragility in her tough façade, not even while healing him. Now, after an entire week of looking into the face of a female past-stricken warrior, he found a new emotion in her eyes: Tenderness. It looked good on her.

"How do you feel?" Her firm voice still didn't want to give away the fact that she was finally letting her guard down, even though her face betrayed her. It was her go-to sentence; she asked it far too many times. It passed her lips like the breath she inhaled every three to four seconds. Minette didn't hide how caring she was. Contrariwise, she wore it like a token, or much rather, a medal. She was proud of how much she could help with the power her aura granted her, but Phil knew that deep down, there was more than just pride in their shared might. Fear came alongside it. How powerful am I? Of what destruction am I capable? Am I using my power as well as possible? Those were the questions Phil asked himself, and he was damn sure that Minette was wondering the same thing. 

"I've been better, gotta be honest. How are the others?" Phil sat up on the covers that were keeping him warm on the cold floor. He had missed the feeling of sleeping in a bed. And while a pile of blankets in a tent was no replacement, it was better than freezing on the cold ground at night. Those dreadful nights seemed to be over; Phil still couldn't believe their luck of running into kindred spirits. When you run away from what seemed like the entire army, every tree in the forest opens its eyes to search, and every branch becomes a hand to grab hold of you. Despite running with companions, Phil felt like he was the only one of his kind. The knowledge that there was somebody out there made him feel better. And feeling Minette's presence made it so much easier for him. Now, worrying for everyone else in the group was a little more bearable.

"They are still trying to calm down after what you just did." Minette wiped a sweaty strand of hair out of her face, such a graceful little movement. It didn't seem typical for her to be bothered with something as meaningless as this. She looked - unusually pretty. Of course, dirt stuck to her body and disturbed the image a tiny bit, but her beauty did not radiate from her purity. It was the wild, untamed nature that made her beautiful. The-I-don't-give-a-damn-and-spit-into-life's-face attitude. Phil would have been scared of her if he hadn't been admiring her strength. Minette exhaled deeply and searched to make eye-contact with the young man in front of her. "I can't blame them. I haven't seen anything like this in my entire life. And I've been around my fair share of Reds before." 

Her words surprised Phil. Ever since meeting Ansel in the youth hostel, he had seen quite a few shows of force in his past. But he had to admit to himself: Even Ansel seemed to be stunned by what Phil did out there. And Phil was convinced that Ansel was even more powerful than himself. Minette looked like she had been through hell. Did she never meet anybody like him or Ansel despite her past?

"You're not a Red, are you?" Their gazes met. Phil didn't have the strength to engage in a mysterious staredown. He wanted to look away, but her beautiful eyes captivated him too much to lower his head. "You're another stage above us, aren't you?" This time, instead of standing over him and firing questions into his face, she knelt to his feet, bringing herself closer to his level. I don't know, man, Phillip wanted to roll his eyes and change the topic - he didn't know enough about it to compete with her. Minette seemed to be much more knowledgable about their powers than he was. So what could Phil contribute to that conversation? Any other topic would have been better. Something he could understand and over which they could converse. But he decided against taking the risk. The fear of ticking her off with his attitude overcame his desire to change the course of their discussion.

"That's what Ansel keeps telling me. I don't know. I don't feel particularly powerful. But then again, I don't know how you feel when you use your powers." As if he had invited her to show him, Minette opened her palm. A red orb of energy appeared in her hand, floating right above her skin. An abundance of tiny spheres that were slightly lighter than the flame-shaped aura around them danced in the light. It was compelling to watch, hypnotizing even. Despite being a light source, it didn't blind Phil, but he couldn't see through it, either. "It's magnificent, isn't it?" Minette whispered. Phil nodded his head wordlessly, waiting for her to explain herself. "Red is the strongest color I'm able to create," Minette continued. "I know that there is something above red. But I don't know what it is." Phil felt the intense stare of her eyes again, quickly obeying by locking eyes with her. "You know what comes after red, right?" That was no question. It was a demand. Phil heard it in her words and her tone. And her follow-up left no doubt about anything anymore: "Wanna show me?"

No. Phil did not. He wanted to forget that he had this power. Forget what he was able to do. The destruction he could perpetrate with a thought or the raise of his hand. It didn't belong in his possession. Phil pursed his lips, trying to seal them shut. Despite the effect, she had on him and the fact that she knew what was going on, he didn't want to tell her the whole truth. They were in the same boat, but even Phil wished he didn't know it. Anyone else who found out about his potential could be considered a possible threat.

Minette noticed his resistance, and the softness in her eyes shifted. A fiery determination replaced the warm empathy that inhabited them before. Gently, her hand moved onto his chest. Phil knew what she was doing. He wanted to stop her, but the fire in his insides pre-empted him, making his hand grasp hers. A pained gasp escaped his compressed lips. There it was. By now, Phil got accustomed to pain attacks in front of another person. But he didn't want her to see it. Whether it was to avoid appearing weak in her presence or because he didn't want her to know his secrets, it didn't matter anymore. Phil's breath picked up its pace. Within a few seconds, the horrific sensation of his insides liquifying had become unbearable, and Phil grasped his sides, vainly trying to ease the pain.

Minette was so dumbfounded by his reaction that her arm jerked back as if she had touched a hot plate. The young man under her looked like he was about to have a seizure, and it took her a few seconds to catch herself and start to help. "Are you in pain?", she asked calmly, but alert, letting him know that she was not freaking out, but also taking his condition seriously. Phil could not answer her. He violently nodded his head, but his vocal cords seemed to be melting in his throat. Tears and saliva dripped from his eyes and mouth, but Minette kept her composure. Her left hand started glowing in the same red light as the orb from before; it closed in on Phil's stomach to pulse the aura energy into his body. "Don't worry; I'm here. I'm a healer."

Red energy entered Phil's body, disappearing inside his skin. Phil had watched her work wonders on his companions' injuries. He gritted his teeth, believing that the pain would soon get better. But he was wrong. So wrong. Instead of decreasing the pain, it spearheaded the burning sensation onto another level. Phil' tore his eyes open and let out a short pain-contorted scream. "Stop, stop, please!! I-I can't..." He wanted to say breathe, but his throat was as dry and as hot as the Sahara. Within seconds, the flesh under Minette's hand was painfully hot, and the girl's expression showed fear for the first time. The unusual reaction to her healing pulse caught her by surprise and unsettled her, but she only needed a few seconds to pick up her courage again: "Hold on, I'll try something!"

Phil was close to losing consciousness when he suddenly felt the heat literally being sucked out of him like someone had attached him to a vacuum. When he opened his eyes, trying to gaze through the haze of sweat dripping from his forehead, he saw Minette, who had reversed her aura pulse. It was now extracting aura from Phil's body, collecting it in a growing globe of red energy. The amount of power in Minette's hand was difficult to control at first, but after about a minute, the aura ball had reached the size of a small football. The burning in Phil's stomach, intestines, and throat slowly eased, and his breathing calmed down as well.

To the surprise of both, the aura started to shift colors. Its red gleam darkened until it had morphed into a beautiful shade of ocean blue. Fascinated by the color, the two young adults gazed at their creation. In the blue light's shine that radiated from the sphere, Minette's eyes resembled valuable crystals. Her dilated pupils and her open mouth gave her the look of a toddler watching the starry sky for the first time: "It's gorgeous."

Phil nodded, entranced by the globe of liquid light. By lifting his palm, he made the sphere transmute into three separate beams of energy that encircled Minette. While she followed them with her big eyes, a chuckle escaped her lips. That surprised Phil majorly. A conventional sound like that was the girliest thing he had seen from her since the two had met, and it was immediately endearing to him. Finally, Minette looked and acted like a human being rather than a stone-faced survival hunter. She reached out for one of the rays, and Phil ordered them to float around her arm playfully before they dissolved into thin air. The two could sense the tent warming up around them thanks to the additional energy; their eyes locked once again.

"So, blue is your color." Phil guessed her words in his mind. He wanted to be mad at her, but her eyes denied any resistance. They stuck spikes into his brain, which prevented him from thinking badly about her. Excuses for her closure filled his pain-clouded mind when she slowly laid down on top of him, her head safely resting on his chest. Instead of telling her off, hot air left his lips. Phil cursed himself. "What was that seizure you had earlier? Does that happen regularly?" Another question his brain tried to justify against his better judgment. His pain attacks were none of her business.

"I am always in pain. Sometimes it's better; sometimes it's worse. And sometimes I get an attack, like the one you witnessed earlier." Answering the question made him angry at himself, but he did not push her from his chest like he originally planned to. His voice was surprisingly soft for his interior condition, as well. Minette rolled her eyes upwards, trying to look him into the eyes, which was ridiculous from her angle. "What does it feel like?" Phil inhaled deeply and let out a very pressured and meaningful sigh. It felt relieving. Finally, he was able to express how he felt about her questions, now, that she was slowly crossing one line of his comfort zone after another. To his disappointment, he answered her question nonetheless. Her power over him frightened Phil. "It's like I have....too much aura inside me. At first, my stomach starts to hurt. Then, my neck starts burning, and in the end, my entire body feels like it's on fire on the inside."

Minette sensed the stress in Phil's body. Just imagining the pain he went through every time this happened, made him tense up. The girl felt pity for him, so she rolled over onto her stomach and fixated his eyes, sliding her arms to his shoulders, massaging them while giving him the calmest look she could muster. "I'm sorry about that. But I've actually heard of that before. My father used to study aura energy, and he told me about a group of people who produce an overdose of it in their bodies. Apparently, there is a limit to how much aura a person can contain. That's why I made it worse when I tried to heal you. I gave you more aura when you already had too much."

That was a reasonable explanation for Phil's constant state of agony. It would shed light on so many things in his life: The blue color of his aura, his immense power, the pain attacks...and if it was cancer as Phil had expected it to be, then she should have healed it, shouldn't she?

"Why are you asking all these questions?" Phil asked instead of thanking her. After all, despite Phil not wanting to impute bad intentions onto her, she had been nothing but rude since entering the tent. Minette itched her nose to delay her answer. "I am the leader of our group. I'm used to checking on everyone to make sure they're fine. You're the leader of your group, and I respect that. But now that we travel together, I feel responsible for everyone, including you and your group. Do you maybe want to figure out a plan together? You know, establish some ground rules."

Phil agreed with that. Setting ground rules was a good idea in this chaotic situation. His friends needed someone strong like Minette to look out for them; Phil just wasn't her caliber. Honestly, he felt ashamed of himself to lie here in this tent while everybody else was outside, looking out for each other. But a set of rules would make it easier for him to help everybody else. And keep Minette under control. Her beautiful eyes were resting on him once again, but her hesitation earlier had given him new strength to stand up for himself: "I have one to start with if you don't mind." Minette nodded hastily, but her eyes widened slightly in surprise after what she heard next:

"Could you ask me first before you touch me next time?" 

Minette swallowed hard on what Phil guessed to be her pride. The quick fluttering of her lashes told Phil that he had caught her off guard and maybe even poked a hole into her confidence. Not to lie, it made Phil feel pretty good about himself. He was not expressly brave, but expressing his feelings towards her took him some nerve to do, and it worked. "Okay...I will," she nodded with a slight stutter at the beginning, shaken by his words. Phil presumed she was fighting herself over being offended or the bigger person. But he was happy to hear that her next question came with respect instead out of spite: "Is there anything else that comes to your mind?" Phil laid back onto the covers. "Not of the top of my head. Can you think of anything?" Minette bit her lip: "You look tired. Are you sure you want to do this now?"

That answer made Phil happy. Despite her sassy, straightforward nature, she was caring and respectful. He wished he had her qualities as a leader. She was born for her role. "That attack made me really tired. Don't be mad at me, please, I feel useless laying around like this." Minette chuckled, but it wasn't condescending. He genuinely made her laugh with what he had said. "I can't get mad at you for suffering. And man, after what you did outside, you deserve to be exhausted." For the first time, the two smiled at each other. She was so pretty like this.

Phil closed his eyes and noticed how she laid down next to him. Their shoulders didn't touch. He was grateful for that. "Is it okay if I lay here?" Minette whispered. Phil nodded but immediately noticed how stupid that was. "Yes," he answered. Minette didn't respond. The air was pleasant around them.


End file.
